Page 73 of Tell Me Something

“Sasha Brooks here.”

“Hi, Sasha. This is Haylee, Josh’s assistant.”

“Yes, hello. What can I do for you?”

“I have what could be an opportunity for you to feature that vintage diamond line.” I filled her in on the details of the shoot and Catherine.

“I don’t know what to say,” she finally admitted after my explanation.

“I was hoping you’d say yes. The only kicker is that she has to meet you tomorrow, though not until the end of the day. Time is tight because she wants to try to get the spread in the February issue. That means the shoot has to be in the next couple of weeks.”

“Oh, shit, that’s quick. Do you have the dresses there in the office? I would need to see them in order to get a sense and then I’d need to talk to the client. Actually, maybe I should get the project first before I mention it, not like they’ll say no.” I could hear her brain running a million miles an hour.

“Mr. Singer is leaving at six o’clock for an appointment, so why don’t you come by his office here after that? I do have the dresses, and I’ll help you work on whatever you need tonight.”

“That’s great, yeah, I’ll come by. Thank you, and I’ll see you then.”

We hung up, and I found myself looking forward to this evening.

I DIDN’T SEE much of Josh until he was ready to leave for his business dinner, and even then he had a phone to his ear. He gave me a smile and a wave on his way out. Although I was used to this routine, sometimes it irritated me that I never knew if we would see each other later. I’d intended to tell him about pitching to Catherine, but the more I thought about it, the more convinced I was to keep it to myself. Given his inability to share his plans, perhaps it was time that I wasn’t so forthcoming with mine.

Sasha trekked over from the Gamble Advertising office six blocks away, arriving at my office on time. Not surprisingly, she looked impeccable and appeared genuinely excited for the opportunity.

The first fifteen minutes were spent showing her the dresses. I saved the wedding gown for last.

“Wow, the whole collection is amazing. But this wedding dress is absolutely stunning.”

I smiled, knowing she meant it sincerely. You couldn’t look at the Valentino and not fall in love.

“Do you think she wants different jewelry for each dress?”

“I think so, although I can’t tell you for sure which gowns she’ll pick, so I think we should give her options for each.”

Taking out her notepad, Sasha was clearly eager to start. “Okay, let’s go through the wardrobe. I brought the catalog of everything vintage, so maybe we can make a list of those pieces we think will go with each dress.” It was going to be a late night, but her enthusiasm was contagious.

We were finishing up with the preliminary list of items when Josh walked back in, still in his suit. He appeared completely surprised by the image of Sasha and me with our heads together at my desk, both looking at my computer. “I— Hello, Sasha.”

She straightened up, looking way too guilty for something so innocent.

“Oh, Josh, sorry. I didn’t know you’d be here.”

Since this was actually his office, he raised a brow.

I interjected quickly. “Sasha was nice enough to come by and help me pick out dresses for the Cosmo shoot.”

“Uh, great. That’s nice. I, um, forgot something. If you ladies are planning to be here awhile, you’re welcome to use my office.”

It was almost eight o’clock, and I wondered if he’d come back here for me. “Thank you. Appreciate it.”

As if remembering he supposedly forgot something, he went into his office and came back out with a folder in his hand. “Ladies, have a good evening.”

Once we heard the elevator ding, we both took a deep breath and then burst into giggles.

“You know it’s bad when my boss’s boss is shocked when I’m being nice,” Sasha divulged, sitting back in her chair. “Why are doing this for me?”

“First and foremost, I liked your idea. And, well, the vintage opportunity presented itself, so it kind of made sense. Also, I like the notion of you showing Brian, and especially Warren, that your idea was a good one.”

She mulled this over. “Thank you. Sincerely.”